SSA assumes, absent information to the contrary, that a record of birth for a natural-born
citizen born in another country was made at or near the time of birth if the birth certificate was issued by civil authorities in one of the areas for which
a recordation date can be assumed.

2. When not to obtain

SSA assumes that the DB shown on the following documents was recorded shortly after
the event occurred and does not get an exact recordation date for:

a.

Testimonium Ortus et Baptismi issued prior to 1940 by church authorities in countries formerly in the Austro-Hungarian
Empire.

b.

Koseki Tohon or Koseki Shohon (family registers) for individuals born in Japan.

EXCEPTION: For Okinawa, the recordation date is assumed only for births after 1946.

A baptismal certificate issued by a Roman Catholic Church (RCC) (as explained in GN 00307.110) showing the following five items:

•

Name of child;

•

Child's age or DB;

•

Date of baptism;

•

Parents' names; and

•

Name of officiating priest.

e.

Blessing certificates issued by the Mormon Church (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day
Saints).

3. Assuming a source record was in existence

If a birth certificate issued outside the U.S. does not show a recordation date and
none can be assumed under GN 00307.105A.2. or GN 00307.190, SSA assumes a civil or religious record was in existence at the time the document
was issued (but NOT before the date of issuance) which showed the information on the
document submitted if all of the following conditions are met:

a.

The document shows the book/register and page and/or entry number from which the information
was taken;

b.

It was issued by an individual or agency which would have had custody of that record
in question;

c.

It was not issued by a civil or religious authority in a country for which this subchapter
shows documentation or fraud problems; and

d.

The information in the claims file or this subchapter does not cast doubt on the validity
of this assumption. For example, no assumption can be made if a civil birth certificate
issued in 1930 is submitted from a country whose civil recordkeeping system started
in 1938.

NOTE: This assumption permits these records to be used as secondary evidence of age but
does not, except for documents issued before age 5, eliminate the requirement for
preferred evidence of age where it is available.

B. Definition

Evidence of comparable value is evidence of equal value. For instance, if a birth record is submitted which was
purportedly established before age 5 but does not contain a recordation date, evidence
of comparable value is other preferred evidence of age.

C. Procedure

If the claimant must write to a foreign country for evidence of age, tell him /her
to ask specifically that the certificate show the date on which the record was established.